"As a matter of fact, I wanted to remind you of something. Goblins are dangerous monsters, even if they’re from the first floor. Their numbers increase very quickly, and it’s easy for them to kill you simply by surrounding you," Aksibilian said.
Macarius glanced toward the dark cave entrance. The opening looked even more ominous now that he knew what lived inside it.
’If they’re that dangerous, why are we going in there?’
"Then, if they’re dangerous and usually live in groups, why are we hunting them? Why don’t we form a bigger group and come here with more people?" Macarius asked. He hesitated briefly before adding, "Wouldn’t that be safer?"
There was a slight trace of fear in his voice, though he tried not to make it too obvious.
Aksibilian, meanwhile, seemed completely occupied with something else. He had taken out his short sword and was using it to chop through a cluster of bushes growing near the rocky path. The blade flashed as he cut through the thick branches, clearing a narrow passage through the vegetation.
"We can’t do that, and there’s a reason for it," he answered simply.
Macarius watched him work, his expression growing increasingly puzzled.
"Reasons? What kind?"
"Firstly, if we come with a group, there won’t be enough EXP for everyone. That means we won’t level up quickly."
Macarius stared at him.
"We can’t level up quickly? Hey, are you even thinking about safety?" he asked, his voice rising with frustration.
He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. They were talking about hunting monsters that could surround and kill them, yet Aksibilian seemed more concerned about dividing experience points than avoiding unnecessary danger.
To Macarius, the logic made little sense.
’ What was the point of becoming stronger if they died before they could make use of that strength?’
"Leveling up quickly is very important," Aksibilian replied.
He finished cutting through the bushes and lowered his sword, finally turning his attention back to Macarius.
"Especially on the lower floors. When everyone is weak, some of the older awakeners hunt newcomers who haven’t had time to grow stronger. If we run into people like that, we need to be strong enough to at least escape. That’s why we need to level up quickly, gather stat points, and obtain new skills that can help us survive."
His expression had become more serious as he explained. The casual manner in which he spoke about hunting monsters had made it easy to forget that the Tower contained dangers far more complicated than anything with claws or fangs.
Macarius had been worried about the goblins.
Now he had something else to worry about.
"What? People who hunt newcomers? Why would they do that? And if they do, won’t they be sent to jail or something?"
The idea seemed ridiculous to him. Even in a place as dangerous as the Tower, he had assumed that there would be some kind of system to punish people who deliberately killed others.
Aksibilian’s response quickly crushed that assumption.
"Yes, we might have laws against crimes in the outside world, but inside the Tower, those rules don’t apply. And that’s the second reason we can’t bring more people into our group. We don’t know whether they’re trustworthy."
Macarius fell silent.
The forest seemed quieter all of a sudden. A faint breeze moved through the bushes Aksibilian had just cut, making the remaining branches rustle against one another.
He had already known that the Tower was dangerous. He had experienced it firsthand when the rabbits had torn him apart, and Aksibilian had warned him about the monsters lurking on the first floor.
But this was different.
Monsters attacked because they were monsters. At least, that was something Macarius could understand. They hunted, killed, and ate whatever they could catch.
Humans were supposed to be different.
Yet, according to Aksibilian, some awakeners deliberately hunted people who were weaker than themselves. They took advantage of newcomers who had barely learned how to use their powers, all because those newcomers were easy targets.
And there was no law to stop them. Macarius slowly turned his gaze toward Aksibilian.
For the first time, he found himself looking at the young man a little differently. Aksibilian had been cheerful and helpful since they met, but now Macarius began to wonder how much of that behavior came from genuine kindness and how much came from experience.
Perhaps the Tower had taught everyone to be suspicious. Or perhaps it had simply revealed what some people were willing to do when there were no consequences.
Aksibilian seemed to notice the change in his expression. He scratched the back of his head, looking slightly awkward.
"Yes, not everyone can be trusted. But I’m not like that, you see. I saved you, didn’t I? And I could have killed you while you were sleeping if I were like those people."
He let out a small, uneasy laugh, as though he had only just realized how suspicious his explanation might sound.
Macarius didn’t respond. He continued looking at Aksibilian, his thoughts hidden behind a quiet expression.
’You could have killed me while I was sleeping?’
For some reason, that wasn’t quite the reassurance Aksibilian seemed to think it was.
Still, Macarius couldn’t deny the facts. Aksibilian had found him unconscious among the rabbit corpses and brought him somewhere safe. He had shared food with him, explained the Tower’s basic rules, and offered to hunt together.
Those were all things a dangerous person could do to gain someone’s trust. They were also things a genuinely kind person might do without expecting anything in return.
Macarius had no way to distinguish between the two. And that uncertainty was beginning to bother him more than the thought of the goblins waiting inside the cave.
"So, what are we going to do?" Macarius asked Aksibilian.
Aksibilian turned toward him with a smile.
"I do have a great idea about how to hunt the goblins."
Judging by that smile, Macarius wasn’t sure whether he should feel relieved or worried.
A short while later, the two of them were standing in front of the cave entrance. Aksibilian had gathered several bundles of green bushes with unusual, roughly circular leaves. Their surfaces were thick and uneven, with faint veins running from the center toward their jagged edges. Even before they lit them, the plants gave off a strange, unpleasant odor when crushed.
Aksibilian arranged the bushes into a small pile near the entrance and struck a spark.
The dry twigs caught fire first. Soon, the flames spread to the leaves, causing them to curl inward and darken. A thick stream of pale greenish smoke began rising from the burning plants. It drifted upward for a moment before the breeze caught it, carrying the fumes directly into the cave.
Macarius watched the smoke disappear into the darkness.
He wasn’t particularly fond of the idea of standing outside a monster’s cave, burning suspicious plants whose properties he knew nothing about. But Aksibilian seemed satisfied with their preparations, which was apparently supposed to make everything better.
"Hey, why are we doing that? And what’s that thing?" Macarius asked, pointing toward the burning bushes.
"That’s called Asambula. It smells terrible, and goblins can’t stand it. Breathing it can mess with their brains, and it also has paralyzing effects."
Macarius slowly turned to look at him.
"What? Then aren’t we going to be affected by it, too?"
"No. It usually affects monsters. It doesn’t have that much of an effect on humans. And even if it does affect us, it’ll be more like taking drugs."
Aksibilian smiled as he explained, apparently seeing no problem with the arrangement.
"Drugs?"
Macarius’s interest was piqued despite himself. He glanced between the burning plants and Aksibilian, trying to decide whether the comparison was supposed to reassure him.
It didn’t.
Before he could ask anything else, Aksibilian drew his short sword and stepped into position beside the cave entrance.
"Now, prepare your sword. We’re going to kill every single one of them that comes out. And don’t forget to finish them all off."
Macarius’s expression stiffened.
He tightened his grip around his Beginner’s Sword, adjusting his fingers around the handle until he could hold it firmly. The familiar weight of the weapon did little to calm his nerves. His eyes remained fixed on the cave entrance, where the greenish smoke continued to disappear into the darkness.
For several seconds, nothing happened. Then a faint scraping sound came from within. Macarius straightened. Something was moving inside the cave.
A small, hunched silhouette appeared at the entrance. It took an unsteady step into the daylight, then another. Its movements were awkward, almost drunken, as though the creature were struggling to remember how its own legs worked.
It was a goblin.
The creature stood a little shorter than an average human, with a disproportionately large head and a narrow, crooked body. Its skin was a sickly green, mottled with darker patches that resembled old bruises. Deep wrinkles gathered around its eyes and mouth, while its long, pointed ears stuck out from either side of its skull at uneven angles.
Its nose was flattened and crooked, with wide nostrils that twitched as it breathed. A row of yellowish teeth protruded from its lower jaw, several of them chipped or missing. Thick saliva clung to the corners of its mouth, and its sunken eyes darted around with a mixture of confusion and hostility.
A ragged piece of dirty cloth hung around its waist, barely enough to cover its body. Its long arms ended in bony fingers tipped with cracked, blackened nails.
In one hand, it dragged a thick wooden stick across the ground. The goblin took another step. Its head swayed to one side. Then it collapsed onto its knees. Macarius blinked.
Before he could make sense of what he had witnessed, another goblin stumbled out behind the first. This one carried a short, rusted sword, its blade stained with dark patches and its edge visibly chipped. It tried to raise the weapon, but its arm trembled violently. Its mouth opened, revealing crooked teeth as a wet, unintelligible groan escaped its throat.
A third goblin emerged moments later. It had no weapon at all.
Its clawed hands scraped against the rocky ground as it lurched forward, nearly falling over the body of the first creature. Its skin looked even worse than that of its companions, covered in dirty scars and swollen lumps. One of its eyes was almost completely shut, leaving the other to stare wildly at the world around it.
All three creatures looked as though they had been dragged out of a cesspit and left to rot in the sun. Macarius instinctively tightened his grip on his sword.
’What the hell is wrong with these things?’
He had expected ugly monsters. He hadn’t expected creatures that looked as though every part of their existence was a mistake. The goblin carrying the rusted sword suddenly let out a shrill, hoarse cry.
It tried to rush toward them.
Its feet tangled beneath it, and it stumbled sideways, but it managed to stay upright long enough to raise its weapon.
Macarius braced himself. Before he could move, Aksibilian was already there. The young man’s body blurred forward. His short sword flashed once.
The goblin’s rusted weapon fell from its hand, clattering against the stone. Aksibilian pivoted smoothly, avoiding the creature as it lurched past him, then delivered a second strike with almost effortless precision.
The goblin collapsed. Aksibilian didn’t even glance at it. He was already moving toward the next one.
The goblin with the wooden stick swung wildly at him. Aksibilian leaned away from the attack, letting the crude weapon pass harmlessly beside his shoulder. He stepped inside the creature’s reach and struck before it could recover its balance.
Another body hit the ground.
The third goblin was still trying to stand when Aksibilian closed the distance and finished the fight.
Three goblins. Three quick movements.
It had happened so fast that Macarius was still trying to process the first attack when Aksibilian had already dealt with the last creature.
The young man straightened and gave his sword a brief shake to clear it before turning toward Macarius.
"See? That’s why we need to act quickly."
Macarius stared at him.
’What the hell was that speed?’
Aksibilian had barely appeared to exert himself. His breathing remained steady, and his posture was relaxed enough to suggest that he had just finished a short warm-up rather than killed three monsters in the space of a few seconds.
Macarius looked down at the corpses, then back at his companion. He was beginning to understand why Aksibilian had been so confident about hunting goblins.
Unfortunately, he was also beginning to understand just how far behind he was. The greenish smoke continued pouring out of the cave.
Another scraping sound echoed from within. Two more goblins appeared at the entrance.
One carried a thick stick, while the other held nothing but its own filthy hands. Both stumbled forward, their eyes unfocused and their mouths hanging open. They looked even more disoriented than the first three, swaying from side to side as they struggled to remain upright.
Macarius swallowed. Here they come. He raised his sword and forced himself to hold his ground. The first goblin lurched toward him, dragging its stick along the ground before suddenly swinging it upward.
Macarius jerked backward.
The wooden club passed close enough to make him flinch. He stumbled a step, nearly losing his balance, but managed to keep both hands on his sword.
The goblin swung again. This time, Macarius stepped to the side. The crude weapon struck the ground with a dull crack.
He didn’t wait for the creature to recover. Remembering the basic movements he had practiced, he brought his sword down in a hurried slash.
The blade struck the goblin.
The creature shrieked and stumbled backward, its grip on the stick loosening. Macarius followed with another swing, his movements clumsy but determined.
The goblin finally fell.
Macarius stood over it, breathing harder than he expected. His hands had tightened so firmly around the sword that his fingers were beginning to ache.
He had killed one. Only one. When he turned toward Aksibilian, the difference between them was almost absurd.
Aksibilian had already dealt with the other goblin. He moved around his opponent with quick, economical steps, striking whenever an opening appeared and never wasting a movement. The goblin could barely keep its balance, much less land a meaningful hit.
Aksibilian dispatched it and immediately turned toward the cave again. Another pair was already emerging. Macarius barely had time to catch his breath before the next goblin approached him.
This one had no weapon, but that didn’t make it any less unpleasant. Its long fingers curled into claws as it rushed forward, baring its yellow teeth. The stench coming from its mouth reached Macarius before the creature itself did.
He grimaced and swung his sword. The goblin ducked awkwardly, more by accident than skill, and his blade cut through empty air.
Its shoulder slammed into Macarius’s torso.
He staggered backward, struggling to maintain his footing as the goblin clawed at his clothes. Its nails scraped across the fabric, and its mouth snapped toward his arm.
Macarius shoved it away and struck again. This time, his sword connected.
The goblin staggered, but it didn’t fall immediately. It flailed its arms and tried to lunge at him once more, forcing Macarius to retreat before he could find another opening.
His heartbeat thundered in his ears.
’Why is this so difficult?’
The creature was barely capable of standing straight. It moved like a drunkard, its attacks wild and poorly coordinated. And yet, killing it was taking far longer than he had expected.
He finally managed to land another strike, bringing the goblin down. Macarius stood still for a moment, staring at the fallen creature while trying to steady his breathing.
Then he heard another pair of footsteps. He looked up. Aksibilian was already moving toward the next group.
The young man slipped past a goblin’s clumsy swing, turned his body, and struck in the same motion. His sword seemed to follow the path of his movements naturally, without hesitation or wasted effort. Before the second goblin could react, Aksibilian had already positioned himself at its side.
A short step. A flash of steel. Another dead goblin. Meanwhile, Macarius was still trying to recover from fighting his second opponent.
The difference wasn’t merely a matter of strength. Aksibilian understood how to move, when to attack, and how to exploit the smallest opening. He didn’t waste energy swinging wildly or retreating farther than necessary. Every movement seemed to have a purpose.
Macarius, on the other hand, was fighting as though he had only recently learned that a sword could be used to kill something.
Which, in a sense, wasn’t far from the truth.
More goblins stumbled out of the cave, appearing two or three at a time. Their numbers were increasing, and the smoke continued to seep into the darkness behind them.
Some carried wooden clubs. Others held crude, rusted blades that looked as though they might break if used against anything harder than a tree branch. A few came out empty-handed, their crooked fingers twitching as they searched for something to grab.
They were all hideous.
Their faces were twisted into unpleasant grimaces, their bodies covered in grime, and their movements increasingly erratic. Some stumbled over the rocky ground, while others collided with their companions in their confusion. Their hoarse cries overlapped into an ugly chorus that echoed across the mountainside.
Aksibilian continued cutting them down. Macarius continued struggling through them one at a time.
Whenever he finished a goblin, another seemed to appear before he could properly rest. His sword felt heavier with every passing minute, and his breathing grew rougher. He was gradually learning to anticipate their clumsy attacks, but each encounter still demanded far more effort than he wanted to admit.
Aksibilian, meanwhile, moved from one enemy to the next with frightening efficiency.
By the time Macarius finally brought down another goblin, Aksibilian had already killed several more. Macarius glanced at him, then at the growing pile of corpses. His expression grew increasingly miserable.
’Aghh... it looks like I’m going to regret some of my decisions.’
He tightened his grip on the sword as another goblin emerged from the cave, its crooked mouth stretched into a mindless snarl. Macarius took a breath, planted his feet, and raised his weapon.
A cold droplet landed on Macarius’s cheek.
He barely noticed it at first, too occupied with the goblin staggering in front of him. He adjusted his grip on the sword and prepared to strike again when another droplet hit the back of his hand.
Then another. And another. Macarius glanced upward.
Dark clouds had gathered above the mountains, covering the sunlight that had illuminated the forest only a short while ago. Before he could fully register the change, the rain began pouring down.